Tornado destroys Arkansas town

Severe weather continues to torment central U.S.

DENNING, ARK (UPI) |
May 25, 2011

ornadoes tormented the middle of America Wednesday morning, reportedly "destroying" a small town in Arkansas.

The National Weather Service office in Tulsa, Okla., released a statement saying it appeared "Denning has been destroyed," KFSM-TV, Fort Smith, Ark., reported. At least three deaths were reported.

Franklin County sheriff's deputies said many are missing and several residents are thought to be trapped in their homes.

The tornado that hit Denning is part of the same system that devastated Joplin, Mo., 160 miles to the north, Sunday, and was up to a mile wide right before it landed, Weather Service meteorologists said.

In Joplin, rescue workers kept searching for survivors in the rubble left by Sunday's massive EF-5 tornado that killed at least 124 people, ABC News reported.

Thirty-six tornadoes were reported in seven states Tuesday, with 12 deaths confirmed in Oklahoma, Kansas and Arkansas.

In Oklahoma, at least eight people were killed and dozens hurt by multiple tornadoes Tuesday, The Oklahoman reported.

Cherokee Ballard, a spokeswoman for the state medical examiner, said the fatalities included four in Canadian County, two in Logan County, one in Grady County, and a child who died Wednesday morning.

More severe weather and a risk of tornadoes was forecast for a vast swath of the Midwest for Wednesday.